Episode 2-132
Summary As Asha continues to sit in her holding cell, Saha tells the audience that even though Asha's divine affinity was known to be 515, its true value is 10,515. A value that high is not impossible, however. Only the deceased Jibril Ajes was previously known to have a divine affinity of over 10,000. As the high-rankers mutter among themselves, one mentions that Jibril even had the skill to catch rakshasas. Saha continues to explain that divine affinity is usually set at birth, so one may think that Asha's must have been high from the start. However... At this point, Lilia begins to speak to the attendees. She explains that she is a native of planet Carte, and was the second-ranked student at Carte's only magic school, behind top-ranked Mirha. She then mentions that Asha is also a native of Carte. From a very young age, Asha possessed very high intelligence so you would expect that she would be a high achiever at the magic school. However, Asha was never admitted into the school; she scored well enough on the written tests, but her divine affinity did not meet the minimum requirement of a value of 300. Since hers was almost nonexistent, her magic abilities were also poor. Lilia then asks Mirha to verify this account, and she reluctantly does, saying that for this reason, Asha enrolled in a regular school instead. Lilia then states that they still do not know how Asha was able to raise her divine affinity so much. Lilia goes on to describe the records of Asha's usage of hoti visnu. From the years N5 to N6 she only used it occasionally, but then in N7 her usage began to greatly increase, including multiple uses in rapid succession in the same location. The half-bloods in the auditorium appear downcast, and one begins sobbing quietly. Saha approaches her and sympathetically takes her webbed hand in his. Lilia then introduces the halfs, announcing that they are here to provide testimonies regarding the times of Asha's multiple spell uses, which coincide with the dates their friends and family were brutally murdered. Urha quietly asks Mirha if she knew about this last revelation, and she replies that she did not. Lilia continues, revealing that the evidence shows that Asha repeatedly killed and resurrected the halfs, occasionally using hoti visnu on herself when her other spell usages ran out. She only stopped when either her vigor or hoti visnu ran out, neither of which are recoverable with the resurrection spell. The audience murmurs again, and someone mentions that killing a half is not considered murder. Someone else wonders what all this has to do with divine affinity. Natasha speaks up and asks that even though Asha should be severely punished for the murder of humans, she does not see how halfs are relevant to this case. Lilia says the whole point is to refute Mirha's argument that Asha killed people for the "greater good." The frequency and methods of killing created an unnatural growth similar to that of the killing of superior suras, but these were simply halfs; what made these halfs so special? Lilia then asks the halfs in attendance to tell everyone the names of their loved ones. One by one, they all speak the same name: Kubera. Lilia states that Asha killed a total of 61 people named Kubera—29 humans and 32 halfs. The halfs had no record made of their deaths except for one, a sponsored half whose death was recorded as destruction of property. Lilia then steps down. Saha states that if these halfs were considered humans, all this would have been discovered much sooner, but this is not the right time to discuss half rights. He then states that Asha's actions caused her usage and divine affinity to grow incredibly fast. He then asks the audience, can this violent path towards personal growth be considered to be for the "greater good"? Lorraine interrupts and asserts that this is all just speculation. How are they linking the murders to the growth of magic skills, especially since being named after a god does not result in any special magic ability? Saha gives her a strange look, then replies that he has something else to reveal now. Others had received oracles regarding this matter, but since none of them can prove it, it is up to everyone else to figure out who to trust. Saha then admits to receiving an oracle from Surya, the God of Light, during the Cataclysm, but if Asha's oracle is also true, she likely received hers from a different god. Surya told him he had been worried about his friend Kubera, who was in danger of disappearing. It did not make sense at the time, but now it is becoming more clear. Kubera's power had been dispersed among those who held his name, and Asha's killed halfs who held a god's power in order to gain power. Saha asserts that even though it is conjecture, it is the only plausible explanation for Asha's growth. Saha then brings up the fact that the suras are also killing those who hold the name Kubera, so therefore Asha's actions are actually benefiting the suras. Instead of enlisting the help of humans to help stop the suras, she set out to kill humans herself to develop her magic and possibly aid the suras. It is impossible to know if she truly received an oracle and from which god, but the gods only offer choices. The final decision lies with the human, and Asha must take full responsibility. Outside, an announcement can be heard informing everyone to please enter five minutes before the final vote begins. A group of magicians pass through a grove of trees, and one says that he thought Mirha was right at first, but then Saha's speech changed his mind. Another wondered why Asha prevented them from giving all those named Kubera their protection, or helped them provide backup for the attack on Atera. They decide that the "greater good" argument is a big lie, and were disappointed that Asha remained silent the entire time. One wonders if the suras are trying to attack Rindhallow because another Kubera is being targeted, then wonders if there could be a Kubera in Aeroplateau as well. Another replies no, because Asha would have already killed that person. Leez, back in her yellow outfit, sits behind a tree, having heard their conversation. Currygom's comment (No comment.) Afterword Currygom's afterword for this episode (posted April 6, 2015): * (thumbnail - Ran): I chose Ran, even though he only appeared in one scene, hehe. I thought that this episode was going to be late, but it wasn't. Thank you, editor... * (blue screen of death): Lilia usually wears heels, but isn't wearing any now for some reason. * (God Kubera): One of the least-shown main characters. * (sitting Leez): Leez's outfit always had long sleeves. It's not a mistake. * + The typo has been fixed. Thanks for letting me know. 2-132 Asha in her cell.png|not a peep 2-132 Halfs in mourning.png|they are sad 2-132 the god behind it all.png|all his fault 2-132 the heartbreak of imminent defeat.png|FML Notes * The other time Leez had her sleeves rolled down was when she traveled through the water channel. * It is clear that Saha is pro-half rights, but unfortunately most magicians are not, mainly due to emotional resonance causing halfs to go on murderous rampages during the Cataclysm. * We can already guess that Asha's oracle was with Visnu, Show/Hide Spoiler and it is confirmed later on that he instructed Asha to kill those with the name Kubera in order to increase her power. * So now we know two ways for a magician to greatly increase her divine affinity: Kill many superior suras (as Jibril Ajes did) or kill many people who carry the name Kubera (as Asha did). References